


You already knew my language

by the_milky_way



Series: 25 Days of Buck and Eddie [14]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: 25 Days of Fic, Boys In Love, Developing Relationship, Eddie is a little angsty, Eddie needs a Break, Firefam are gossips, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, M/M, POV Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Prompt Fic, Sharing Clothes, Soft Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Teasing, Worried Eddie Diaz, and annoyed, prompts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:07:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28073709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_milky_way/pseuds/the_milky_way
Summary: Eddie needs a break, hides on the roof and Buck comes to find him. If he sneaks in some cuddling to make Eddie feel better, well no one needs to know.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Series: 25 Days of Buck and Eddie [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036098
Comments: 18
Kudos: 254





	You already knew my language

**Author's Note:**

> So, why not make a trilogy out of it? This wasn't supposed to be a part of anything other than the 25 days but while getting it ready to post I thought it fits with the two previous parts. So this should work as a stand-alone but it follows [really getting used to being in this dream](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28032837) and [Once you spelled it out](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28051590).
> 
> Prompt for Day 14:
> 
> "Clean"
> 
> and [SMeerschwein](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SMeerschwein/pseuds/SMeerschwein) prompted with: "Buck is wearing Eddie's clothers for some very mundane reason and everyone teases them about it."
> 
> Title, as with the other two parts, taken from Gavon DeGraw's "Spell it out"

The silence is his refuge sometimes. When he can’t find the right words, the right way to express what he feels, what he wants, he seeks out the most silent place he can think of. Right now it’s the roof of the station. He can still hear his team, his colleagues downstairs. Noise filtering through the door he left cracked open. 

It’s past dinner but too early to go looking for a nap yet. It has been a little too loud for a while already, so he sought refuge in the emptiness of the hallway first, then the stairs, then the roof - until he couldn’t make out words any longer. Just broken pieces of sound, from within the house or from the street down below.

It’s rare that he takes this time - these precious few minutes he can steal, can get away with. Because sometimes things are just too much. These moments never stay around for long but long enough for him to feel the need to take a step away. Necessary to be able to breathe. He always has been an insanely private person and this part of his personality shoulders its way to the foreground from time to time.

It’s testament of how well some of the people back in the house know him. They are staying away for now. Keep others from seeking out his hiding place as well as it seems. He has had time to catch a breath, to appease the whirling thoughts, the doubts his mind came up with halfway through shift.

It’s just, this firehouse is so entrenched in gossip sometimes that it’s hard not to take it personally. Everybody has to weigh in on everybody’s business. And it’s annoying, sometimes exhausting enough for him to want to get away from it. 

And he knew what would happen the second Buck left his place in one of his t-shirts. 

He knew it and still hoped it might fly by, unnoticed, uncommented. Without wild speculations going around. Guess he was wrong. He loves his friends but sometimes they take too many liberties when it comes to his and Buck’s relationship. The one redeeming thing about tonight has been Bobby’s call for silence - a hidden command to settle down. 

Buck’s constant tries to divert attention were sort of cute as well. It had been fun at first, playing with assumption when the reason was and still is totally banal. But the longer it went on, the more people got in on it, the less he felt comfortable with it. Not because he’s got a problem with the topic in itself but because they kept digging deeper and deeper into something he considers profoundly private.

Buck just spent the night, was out of clean things to wear and borrowed some of Eddie’s. Nothing unusual there. The thing is, they had a shift right after, so Buck didn’t go home beforehand and thus showed up wearing one of Eddie’s maroon henleys. By now everyone knows that Buck doesn’t own these kinds of henleys and that Eddie does.

He’d been prepared for some of the comments, had grinned even when Chim asked about it being a wild night or laughed when Hen suggested a summer wedding. All in good faith and so on. Neither him nor Buck commented on any of those, just kept quiet and smirked. 

Maybe that was their one grave mistake. Maybe they should have said something, should have staunched the spreading of rumors when it first appeared. Maybe then he wouldn’t have to hide up here and pretend it doesn’t bother him. Hen and Chim had long calmed down, apologized even but it came too late for the rest of the house.

He knows Buck is there the second he steps out onto the roof. Buck isn’t loud, tries to tread carefully as not to startle him too much. But he knows Buck’s step, would recognize it anywhere. Feels himself relax a little with the knowledge that the one person he actually wants close right now is there.

“Eddie?”

He doesn’t turn, keeps on staring out into the light poisoned night but inclines his head to signal that he’s hearing Buck. They have always been good at silent communication, so it doesn’t come as a surprise when about five seconds later Buck settles next to him on the blanket Eddie dragged out of one of the supply closets. He presses close, thighs and arms aligned, knees knocking together. Eddies doesn’t miss the look of his shoulder. Buck’s checking if they are alone, left in peace. He is pretty sure everyone down there knows they are up here together.

“You’ve been up here for an hour.”

That long already? He hasn’t kept track of time but would have heard any alarm, so it must be a silent night. He feels bad, though, tries to remember if he accidentally left his colleagues burdened with his chores. But then he remembers that it was the first thing he did when trying to get away. His chores are done.

“Eddie, are you okay?” Buck sounds worried, unusually so because Eddie knows Buck gets him and his urges for some alone time. He’s a little confused as to why Buck is worried this time.

“I’m good. Just needed some minutes. Guess I got lost in the stars.”

The snort from his right has his lips twitching.The only way they’d be able to see the stars from here would be if the entirety of downtown LA was graced by a power outage. And even then greater LA would still be emitting enough light to blur out most of the stars. And really, with a power outage of this magnitude they wouldn’t have time to sit and watch stars anyway.

“You sort of ran out of there like something was on fire. I know they’ve been over the top today. And I’m sorry. I didn’t think it would be that huge of a deal. I’m wearing your shirt, so what?”

Buck actually sounds a little helpless, unsure of what to really say to help Eddie with whatever it is that’s bothering him. It already helps having Buck close. Just the fact alone combined with the feeling of Buck’s heat pressed into his side settles something in Eddie.

“It’s not your fault that our team is made up of horrible gossips. And usually I don’t mind. Just today, it got too much. I don’t even know why.”

“Because they are right this time and you are not ready to let them know?”

Buck is choosing his words carefully. No accusation there, just a question. But he knows Eddie so damn well, that he is on point. Because yes, that’s somehow exactly why it bothers Eddie so much. In a certain way and not the one Eddie knows Buck is thinking. 

This thing between them is so new that he just wants to take the time to enjoy, to build, to connect in all the important ways. Eddie is confident about where they are heading, has no inclination to hide this at all. But being teased so mercilessly over a damn shirt, it hadn’t been a good feeling. Mainly because it made him question how it’ll be once everyone actually knows.

“I don’t care if they know… Hell, I outed us to the higher ups before there was anything to out. I don’t care about that. And I can live with the teasing. I get in on it as well. What I care about, though, is our colleagues using us and whatever they think is between us as a basis for gossip and speculations. As if our sole purpose in these moments is to entertain, to amuse them. And sometimes I wonder if they even think about what that might do to us. To you. I know that you hate still being taken for a player. And I don’t want that for you. To think that this was just because of a stupid shirt… I’m not keen on knowing what might happen when they learn the truth.”

Buck is silent for a while, almost completely still next to him. Muscles taut, tense against Eddie where they are pressed together. When Eddie finally turns Buck is already looking at him, taking him in. There’s wonder and understanding in his eyes. And so much love that Eddie has to swallow. They haven’t even talked about this yet. Haven’t defined what they are. Just that they are something. Everything to Eddie, though, if he someone should ask - and apparently to Buck as well.

“Oh Eddie. It’s okay. I promise. I can take it in a stride as long as you are there with me. As mushy as that sounds, I honestly don’t even really hear it most of the time. Am way too distracted by you these days.”

“You sure about that?”

“Yes. And once they do know, we’ll sit them down and talk to them about boundaries and stuff… If it gets bad. I… Well, I sort of went off on them after you fled. Told them to stuff it. ‘Cause I was too lazy to do laundry and you as an awesome best friend were nice enough to overlook my apparent lack of domestic skills and lent me a shirt.”

Eddie actually laughs at that. It does sound very much like Buck. If only they knew how good of a houseman Buck can be if he wants to. And he can imagine Chims indignant face, Hens eye-roll and Bobby’s somewhat fond but exasperated smile. He feels a little stupid for hiding away like a petulant child but being up here and now having Buck to himself for a minute does him wonders. His mind is calm again, not hung up on doubts and almost-regrets. If this is even worth it? The teasing, the gossip. It is. It so is.

“They don’t need to know that I’m wearing you underwear as well.”

Yeah, Eddie loves this man. 

This time it’s him glancing over his shoulder, making sure they are still alone, before he moves in and steals a kiss. It’s short but warm and reassuring. It’s them. It’s home and a future and a family. 

Buck wraps an arm around him then, pulls him even closer and just holds on. Eddie is sure he’ll be fine for the rest of the shift. He’ll be okay to face everyone again in a few minutes, might even be okay to weigh in on the teasing. For now though, he just wants to sit here, be quiet and enjoy having his he guesses boyfriend close.

“You know, you’re pretty good at this being a boyfriend thing,” Eddie exhales into the night, grins at the laugh it elicits. 

“Oh? I am, aren’t I? Glad we are on the same page then.”

Buck snatches another kiss, smiling against Eddie’s lips.

**Author's Note:**

> A little over halfway done. Wow, I am sort of amazed that I've gotten this far. It's fun and I love that people seem to enjoy it all. So thank you guys for all the love and comments. I really appreciate it.
> 
> Awesome A., thank you, too.  
> <3


End file.
